Introducing ‘School Daze’ – A new comic co-produced with autistic students from New Forest School to support transitions to secondary school
We are really pleased to share a new comic called ‘School Daze’ as part of our Voices through Art project funded by the University of Southampton’s ESRC Impact Acceleration Account Funding (IAAF). ACoRNS has collaborated with illustrator Sam Davies, Tracie Raufi (Assistant Headteacher-Curriculum and Head of Art and Design) and autistic students at New Forest School to co-produce a comic about the transition to secondary school. The comic tells the story of Lee Mouse who is getting ready for his first day at secondary school. The storyline reflects the voices and experiences of autistic students, as well as some of the strategies that they identified that support their well-being at school. These include having positive and understanding relationships with staff members, a safe space to go to decompress, and an opportunity to talk through worries and fears. We are working on developing educational resources that can be used alongside reading the comic – but in the meantime we would be very happy for you to share the comic amongst your networks. Any feedback gratefully received! The comic can be downloaded here: If you would like some printed comics for your settings, please get in touch with Dr Hanna Kovshoff at h.kovshoff@soton.ac.uk. Watch this space for further School Daze comic developments!
